Airports & Aerodromes Operational Management

Aerodrome Manual Development, Compliance Advisory, Regulatory Engagement and Operational Assurance for Licensed Aerodromes under UK CAA CAP 168, ICAO Annex 14 and Associated Frameworks

Running a licensed aerodrome is an exercise in sustained regulatory compliance across a framework that is simultaneously demanding, detailed and continuously evolving. The Aerodrome Manual must be current, accurate and accepted by the Civil Aviation Authority. The operational procedures it describes must match what actually happens on the aerodrome. The compliance monitoring system must identify and correct discrepancies before they become findings. The safety management arrangements must function rather than merely exist. The emergency planning framework must be exercised and evidenced. And the personnel operating within the aerodrome’s various functions — from airside operations through to ground handling, RFFS and maintenance — must be trained, assessed and recorded to the standards the framework requires.

For many aerodrome operators, particularly those managing regional airports, general aviation aerodromes or specialist facilities, the internal resource available to manage these obligations is limited. The Head of Operations who is also responsible for safety management, the person who both manages compliance monitoring and writes the Aerodrome Manual revisions, the organisation that must respond to a CAA oversight finding without a compliance team to support the response — these are the operational realities of aerodrome management outside the major international terminals. And these are the organisations AACS is built to support.

Aerospace and Aviation Consulting Services (AACS) provides specialist operational management advisory, documentation and compliance services for licensed aerodromes across the full size spectrum — from major regional airports and business aviation facilities through to small licensed aerodromes and heliports. We provide the regulatory knowledge, documentation capability and operational depth that aerodrome operators need to manage their licensing obligations effectively, respond to authority findings with credible corrective action, and maintain the operational standards that protect both the aerodrome licence and the safety of everyone who uses the aerodrome.

This is not a training page. This page describes AACS’s advisory, documentation and compliance services for aerodrome operators. The AACS airport training portfolio — including AVDP, airside pedestrian safety, Human Factors and emergency response training — is described on the Airport Training page. The AACS airport SMS advisory service is described on the Airport Safety Management Systems page. This page covers the operational management, documentation and regulatory compliance services that sit alongside and support both.

The Regulatory Framework for Aerodrome Operations

Aerodrome operators in the United Kingdom operate under a regulatory framework that is both extensive and detailed. The CAP 168 licensing framework establishes the conditions under which a certificated aerodrome may operate and the obligations its operator must discharge. The associated CAP series — CAP 642, CAP 699, CAP 772, CAP 790 and others — provides the detailed operational and safety standards that the licensing framework requires aerodrome operators to implement. ICAO Annex 14 provides the international standards and recommended practices with which UK CAA requirements are aligned. And the general legislative framework — health and safety law, aviation security requirements, environmental legislation — imposes obligations that apply to the aerodrome as a workplace and a regulated facility regardless of its aviation character.

Aerodrome Manual & Airport Operational Manual Development

The Aerodrome Manual is the defining document of a licensed aerodrome. It must accurately describe the aerodrome’s physical characteristics, its operational procedures, its safety management arrangements, its emergency planning framework and the regulatory conditions under which it operates. It must be accepted by the Civil Aviation Authority. It must be kept current as the aerodrome evolves — as the physical infrastructure changes, as operational procedures are revised, as new regulatory requirements come into force, and as personnel, organisations and operational relationships change. And it must be the document that the CAA inspector reads and then finds accurately represented in the aerodrome’s operational reality.

The gap between what the Aerodrome Manual says and what the aerodrome actually does is among the most consistently identified finding categories in UK CAA aerodrome licence oversight. It develops through the same mechanism in almost every case: the manual is accurate at the point of initial certification, organisational or operational changes occur, and the manual is not revised to reflect them. Over time, the gap widens. At oversight, the inspector finds that the manual describes procedures that are not followed, an SMS that is not implemented as documented, or emergency arrangements that bear no resemblance to the plans on the shelf.

Aerodrome Manual Development

AACS develops Aerodrome Manuals for aerodrome operators approaching initial licence certification, applying for licence variation, or revising existing documentation that has fallen behind the aerodrome’s current operational reality. We write manuals that are accepted by the authority and that accurately describe the aerodrome as it actually operates — not a generic template adapted to look aerodrome-specific.

Aerodrome Manual development services include:

• Full Aerodrome Manual development for initial licence application — covering all CAP 168 required sections: aerodrome description and physical data, operational procedures, airside safety management, SMS, emergency planning, fire and rescue services, wildlife hazard management, construction safety management and compliance monitoring
• Aerodrome Manual revision following physical change — runway works, new infrastructure, changes to terminal facilities, new apron areas or taxiway configurations, changes to published instrument procedures
• Aerodrome Manual revision following operational change — new airline operations, new ground handling arrangements, changes to airside access control, new service providers, changes to RFFS category or provision
• Aerodrome Manual revision following regulatory change — UK CAA CAP revisions, ICAO Annex 14 amendments, new DfT security requirements, legislative changes affecting aerodrome operation
• Aerodrome Manual section redevelopment — where specific sections of an existing manual require substantive revision without full manual replacement
• Authority submission management — managing the submission of the revised manual to the UK CAA, responding to authority comments and achieving acceptance
• Aerodrome Manual gap analysis — independent review of the existing manual against CAP 168 requirements and the aerodrome’s current operational reality, identifying the gaps the authority would find at oversight

Airport Operational Manual (AOM) Development

For larger airports, the Airport Operational Manual provides the comprehensive operational reference for all airport functions — extending beyond the CAP 168-required Aerodrome Manual content to cover the full range of operational procedures across airside operations, ground handling interfaces, terminal operations, emergency response, security, environmental management and stakeholder relationships. The AOM is both a regulatory document and an operational management tool — the reference that airport operations staff use to manage the airport consistently regardless of which team or shift is on duty.

AACS develops and revises Airport Operational Manuals that are operationally usable as well as regulatory compliant:

• Full AOM development — structured to address all regulatory requirements while providing genuine operational utility as a reference document for airport operations teams
• AOM section development — targeted development of specific AOM sections where the existing document requires substantive revision or where new operational areas require coverage
• AOM review and alignment — assessing the existing AOM against regulatory requirements and operational practice, identifying gaps and inconsistencies and producing a structured revision programme
• AOM document control system design — revision management, distribution control and amendment record-keeping frameworks that keep the AOM current without creating administrative burden

Standard Operating Procedure Development

The Aerodrome Manual and AOM describe the operational framework. Standard Operating Procedures provide the step-by-step operational detail that operational staff require to carry out specific activities consistently and safely. SOPs that are incomplete, that describe an idealised procedure that does not reflect operational reality, or that have not been updated to reflect changes in equipment, layout or regulatory requirements are procedures that operational staff learn not to follow — replacing the documented SOP with the informal practice that actually works in the operational environment.

AACS develops and reviews SOPs for aerodrome operators across the full range of operational activities:

• Airside movement area operations — runway and taxiway inspection procedures, FOD management, line and marking inspection, surface condition reporting
• Vehicle operations and access control — AVDP scheme management, contractor access control, LVO vehicle movement procedures, aerodrome circuit management
• Aircraft stand and apron management — stand allocation, apron entry procedures, aircraft on stand safety, pushback and engine start authorisation
• Low Visibility Operations (LVO) — LVO promulgation, vehicle movement restrictions, holding point management, LVO monitor procedures
• Wildlife hazard management — bird control procedures, wildlife patrol protocols, strike reporting and data management, species-specific management procedures
• FOD management — FOD walk procedures, vehicle FOD checks, FOD reporting, FOD data recording and trend management
• Runway incursion prevention — holding point management, runway crossing procedures, hot spot management, low visibility incursion prevention
• Emergency response procedures — aircraft accident and emergency procedures, medical emergency, fire response, bomb threat, fuel spill and environmental incident procedures
• Construction and works safety procedures — live aerodrome construction safety management, daily works briefing, airside area handback procedures, construction vehicle access and control

Compliance Monitoring & Regulatory Assurance

Compliance Monitoring System Design

Every licensed aerodrome is required to maintain a compliance monitoring system that identifies and corrects departures from regulatory requirements and operational procedures before they become licence findings or safety events. In practice, the compliance monitoring systems of many aerodrome operators — particularly smaller licensed aerodromes without dedicated compliance resource — are either inadequate for the scope of the regulatory obligations they must cover, or have been established at licensing and not meaningfully reviewed since. The result is a system that produces compliance records without producing genuine compliance assurance.

AACS designs compliance monitoring systems for aerodrome operators that are proportionate to the aerodrome’s size and operational complexity, structured to identify genuine compliance risks rather than generate paperwork, and sustainable within the organisation’s actual management resource:

• Compliance monitoring system design aligned with CAP 168 and the aerodrome’s specific licensing conditions — covering all regulated operational areas
• Internal audit programme design — schedule, scope, methodology and reporting framework for the aerodrome’s self-audit activity
• Audit checklist development — calibrated to the aerodrome’s specific layout, procedures, personnel structure and operational scope rather than generic aerodrome compliance lists
• Finding classification and corrective action framework — the process through which compliance findings are classified by risk significance, assigned corrective action, tracked to closure and reviewed for effectiveness
• Compliance monitoring integration with SMS — ensuring that compliance findings are treated as safety data and feed into the SMS improvement cycle
• Compliance monitoring documentation — the records, reports and audit outputs that demonstrate compliance monitoring activity to the authority at oversight
• Compliance monitoring training — ensuring the personnel responsible for conducting internal compliance monitoring understand the methodology and can conduct audits that produce genuine compliance intelligence

Independent Compliance Audit

An independent compliance audit from AACS provides aerodrome operators with an external assessment of regulatory compliance across the full scope of CAP 168 and associated requirements — the assessment that identifies the gaps the CAA inspector would find, before the inspector finds them. This is particularly valuable for aerodrome operators approaching a scheduled oversight visit, for new aerodrome management teams assessing the compliance status they have inherited, and for operators who have been through a period of significant operational or organisational change and need an independent view of where their compliance now stands.

Independent compliance audit services include:

• Full aerodrome compliance audit against CAP 168 and all associated CAP requirements — identifying compliant areas, partial compliance and gaps requiring corrective action
• Aerodrome Manual accuracy audit — assessing whether the manual accurately describes the aerodrome’s current physical and operational reality
• Operational procedure audit — assessing whether documented SOPs reflect how operations are actually conducted and whether they meet the required regulatory standards
• Training compliance audit — reviewing training records, scheme documentation and Aerodrome Manual training section accuracy across all personnel categories
• SMS compliance audit — assessing whether the aerodrome’s SMS documentation and implementation meet CAP 168 and ICAO Annex 19 requirements
• RFFS compliance audit — reviewing RFFS competency records, equipment serviceability documentation and operational capability against the aerodrome’s licensed RFFS category
• Wildlife hazard management compliance audit — reviewing wildlife management records, risk assessment currency and procedure implementation
• Environmental compliance review — assessing compliance with noise abatement procedures, planning conditions, discharge consents and environmental management obligations
• Corrective action plan development — a structured, prioritised plan addressing all findings identified in the audit, with clear ownership and realistic timescales

Authority Oversight Preparation

UK CAA licence oversight visits are the primary mechanism through which the authority assesses whether a licensed aerodrome is operating in compliance with its licence conditions and the CAP 168 framework. Preparation for oversight is not simply an administrative exercise — it is the opportunity to identify and address the gaps that would otherwise be found by the authority, to ensure that documentation accurately reflects operational reality, and to present the aerodrome’s compliance position in the most credible way.

AACS provides structured oversight preparation support for licensed aerodrome operators:

• Pre-oversight compliance gap analysis — independent assessment of the aerodrome’s compliance position against the specific areas the authority typically examines at oversight
• Documentation readiness review — ensuring Aerodrome Manual, operational procedures, training records, SMS documentation and compliance monitoring records are complete, current and accurately reflect current operations
• Inspector engagement preparation — advising the aerodrome operator on how to present the organisation’s compliance position clearly and credibly, and how to manage specific areas of regulatory complexity
• Finding response support — where previous oversight visits have generated findings, assessing whether the corrective actions taken genuinely address the root cause and whether the authority will be satisfied with the remediation at the next oversight visit

Authority Finding Response & Corrective Action

When a UK CAA oversight visit generates findings, the aerodrome operator’s response to those findings determines both the regulatory outcome and the authority’s confidence in the organisation’s compliance management. A finding response that addresses only the surface manifestation of the finding — that changes a document without understanding why the document was wrong, or that introduces a procedure without investigating why the previous procedure was not being followed — does not resolve the compliance risk. It defers it.

AACS provides specialist support for aerodrome operators responding to authority findings:

• Finding analysis — understanding the root cause of each finding: whether it reflects a procedural gap, a documentation failure, an operational divergence from the documented procedure, a training deficit or a systemic compliance management weakness
• Corrective action plan development — a structured response to each finding that addresses the root cause identified, with clear corrective actions, ownership and timescales that satisfy the authority’s remediation expectations
• Documentation corrective action — revising Aerodrome Manual, SOPs, training frameworks and compliance monitoring documentation as required by the finding
• Operational corrective action support — advising on the procedural and operational changes required to close findings related to operational practice rather than documentation
• Authority response drafting — producing the formal written response to the authority’s finding notifications, presenting the corrective action plan in the format and at the level of detail the authority expects
• Post-corrective action verification — independently verifying that corrective actions have been implemented as described and are having the intended effect before the authority’s follow-up assessment

Emergency Planning & Response Framework

Every licensed aerodrome is required to hold an Aerodrome Emergency Plan that defines the response arrangements for the full range of emergency scenarios the aerodrome may face — aircraft accidents and serious incidents, aircraft ground incidents, fire in terminal or airside buildings, fuel spills and environmental incidents, medical emergencies, security incidents, and major infrastructure failures. The emergency plan must be exercised, and the exercises must generate genuine learning that improves the plan and the response capability it describes.

Emergency planning is an area where the gap between documentation and operational reality is particularly consequential. An emergency plan that describes a response framework the aerodrome cannot actually deliver — because the personnel it relies on are not trained to the roles it assigns them, because the equipment it specifies is not available or is not maintained, or because the inter-agency coordination it assumes has never been tested — is not an emergency plan. It is a liability document.

Aerodrome Emergency Plan Development

AACS develops Aerodrome Emergency Plans that describe a response framework the aerodrome can actually deliver — built around the aerodrome’s actual resources, personnel, equipment and external agency relationships rather than a generic emergency plan template:

• Full AEP development or substantive revision — covering all emergency scenario categories required by CAP 168 and ICAO Annex 14
• Crash and major accident response plan — roles, responsibilities, action cards, staging areas, inter-agency coordination and casualty management framework
• Aircraft ground incident response — fire on aircraft on the ground, aircraft system failures at the stand, hazardous materials incidents
• Full emergency and local standby procedures — graduated response framework, alert state definitions and escalation procedures
• Medical emergency response — first aid and medical response procedures, ambulance service interface, medical post arrangements
• Security incident response — bomb threat procedures, suspicious package protocols, hostile vehicle mitigation interface with airport security and police
• Environmental incident response — fuel spill containment, fire suppression run-off, notification procedures and regulatory reporting requirements
• Winter operations emergency procedures — low friction surface management, snow clearance emergencies, aircraft de-icing incidents
• External agency coordination framework — police, ambulance, fire service, coastguard (where relevant), Local Authority emergency planning, hospital notification and reception procedures
• Business continuity arrangements — aerodrome closure procedures, alternate aerodrome arrangements and communications with airlines and other stakeholders

Emergency Exercise Design & Facilitation

The Aerodrome Emergency Plan must be exercised. CAP 168 requires aerodrome operators to conduct a full emergency exercise at intervals not exceeding two years, with interim desktop or partial exercises to test specific elements of the plan in the intervening period. The purpose of an exercise is not to produce a record that an exercise has taken place — it is to test the plan and the response capability it describes, identify the weaknesses that the test reveals, and generate the improvements that make the aerodrome’s emergency response genuinely more effective.

AACS designs and facilitates emergency exercises for licensed aerodromes that achieve this purpose:

• Full aerodrome emergency exercise design — scenario development, role player briefing, inject schedule, observer framework and evaluation criteria; calibrated to test the specific elements of the AEP the aerodrome most needs to validate
• Multi-agency exercise coordination — coordinating exercise participation from police, ambulance, fire service, airlines, ground handlers and other stakeholders whose response the exercise tests
• Exercise facilitation and direction — on-the-day management of the exercise, inject delivery, safety oversight and real-time observation
• Exercise evaluation and hot debrief — structured evaluation of the exercise outcomes, identification of plan and procedural gaps, and immediate feedback to participants
• Post-exercise report and improvement plan — a structured report identifying the specific plan improvements the exercise has generated, with prioritised actions and responsible owners
• Desktop and tabletop exercise design and facilitation — for testing specific elements of the AEP, training new post-holders in their emergency roles, or preparing for a full exercise
• Interim exercise programme design — the programme of partial exercises and desktop events between full exercises that maintains emergency preparedness across the two-year exercise cycle

Runway, Airside & Operational Safety Management

Runway Incursion Prevention

Runway incursions remain one of the highest-consequence risk categories in aerodrome operations. The combination of aircraft operating at high speed in a confined and complex surface environment, multiple surface users with varying levels of familiarity with the aerodrome layout, and the consequences of a conflict on or near the runway make runway incursion prevention a primary operational safety management priority. ICAO Doc 9870 and CAP 168 both require aerodrome operators to implement a specific runway incursion prevention programme — not a general airside safety awareness measure, but a structured, monitored and continuously improved programme targeting the specific causal factors of runway incursions at this aerodrome.

AACS provides runway incursion prevention advisory and programme design for aerodrome operators:

• Runway incursion risk assessment — specific hazard identification and risk assessment for the aerodrome’s runway incursion risk profile: hot spots, complex intersections, challenging holding points, LVO risk, vehicle and pedestrian interface risk
• Runway incursion prevention programme design — the structured programme of procedural, infrastructure and training measures that addresses the specific incursion risk profile of the aerodrome
• Hot spot management — documenting, marking and managing the aerodrome’s specific runway incursion hot spots in the Aerodrome Manual and operational procedures
• LVO runway incursion prevention — additional measures applicable when reduced visibility increases the incursion risk profile
• Runway incursion SPI design — the safety performance indicators that monitor incursion precursor events at the aerodrome
• Runway incursion incident review — structured assessment of runway incursion events and precursor incidents to identify systemic causal factors and prevention improvements

FOD Management Programme

Foreign Object Debris on the aerodrome movement area represents a risk of aircraft damage ranging from tyre blow-out through to catastrophic engine failure. FOD management is required by CAP 168 and CAP 642 and must be addressed in the Aerodrome Manual. But an effective FOD management programme is not simply a policy statement and a schedule of FOD walks — it is a systematic approach to identifying FOD sources, controlling FOD entry to the movement area, detecting and removing FOD promptly when it is present, and using FOD data to identify and address the organisational conditions that produce FOD.

AACS designs FOD management programmes for aerodrome operators:

• FOD risk assessment — identifying the specific FOD sources at the aerodrome: construction activity, catering operations, cargo handling, ground handling equipment, wildlife, weather events, and aerodrome infrastructure condition
• FOD control procedures — entry inspection requirements, load security standards for vehicles operating airside, FOD walk scheduling and conduct, inspection area responsibility matrix
• FOD detection systems — advisory on physical FOD detection technology appropriate to the aerodrome’s movement area configuration and traffic volume
• FOD reporting and data management — the reporting system, data recording format and trend analysis process that convert FOD finds into safety intelligence
• FOD SPI design — safety performance indicators that monitor FOD find rates, source attribution and trend over time
• FOD management Aerodrome Manual section development — accurately documenting the aerodrome’s FOD management programme in the format required by CAP 168

Wildlife Hazard Management

Wildlife strikes represent a persistent and consequential risk at all licensed aerodromes. CAP 168 requires aerodrome operators to assess wildlife strike risk, implement proportionate management measures, and maintain records of wildlife strikes and bird control activity. CAP 772 provides the detailed guidance framework. An effective wildlife hazard management programme must address both the immediate bird control measures and the longer-term habitat management that reduces the attractiveness of the aerodrome environment to bird species that present a strike risk.

AACS provides wildlife hazard management advisory for aerodrome operators:

• Wildlife hazard risk assessment — assessment of the aerodrome’s specific wildlife strike risk profile, including species-specific risk, habitat analysis and seasonal variation
• Wildlife management plan development — the structured plan of bird control measures, habitat management actions and monitoring arrangements that addresses the assessed risk
• Wildlife management Aerodrome Manual section — accurately documenting the aerodrome’s wildlife hazard management arrangements in the format required by CAP 168
• Wildlife strike data management — the recording, classification and trend analysis system that converts strike records into safety intelligence and management intelligence
• Wildlife management SPI design — indicators that monitor strike rates, control effectiveness and habitat condition trends
• CAP 772 compliance assessment — independent review of the aerodrome’s wildlife hazard management arrangements against CAP 772 requirements

Construction & Development Safety Management

Construction and development activity on a live licensed aerodrome creates a specific and demanding safety management challenge — the management of the interface between construction operations and live aircraft movements, airside vehicle operations and operational personnel. Poorly managed construction on the aerodrome is a direct runway incursion and FOD risk, and construction activities that are not correctly integrated into the aerodrome’s operational safety management framework are a consistent source of authority findings.

AACS provides construction safety management advisory for aerodrome operators managing development or maintenance projects on the live aerodrome:

• Construction safety risk assessment — identifying the specific hazards that the construction activity introduces to the live aerodrome environment and the controls required to manage them
• Construction safety management plan — the document that governs the safe conduct of construction on the live aerodrome, addressing access control, vehicle management, FOD risk, movement area proximity management and incident response
• CDM compliance advisory — ensuring the aerodrome operator and principal contractor discharge their respective CDM 2015 obligations in the aerodrome environment
• Operational impact assessment — assessing the impact of construction activity on aerodrome operational capability, licensed RFFS category, instrument procedures and published aerodrome information
• NOTAM and AIP amendment advisory — ensuring the aerodrome’s aeronautical information is current and accurate during the construction period
• Construction phase compliance monitoring — ongoing compliance assessment of construction operations against the construction safety management plan

Tenant, Contractor & Stakeholder Management

Tenant Management Framework

The aerodrome operator’s licence imposes obligations on the conduct of airside operations that extend beyond the operator’s own personnel and vehicles to every organisation that operates within the aerodrome’s licensed area. Airlines, ground handlers, fuelling operators, maintenance organisations, catering contractors, cargo operators and construction companies all operate within the aerodrome operator’s regulatory responsibility — and the aerodrome operator must have a framework for setting standards, monitoring compliance and intervening when standards are not met.

In practice, many aerodrome operators’ management of tenant and contractor compliance is limited to the airside induction process and the periodic circulation of safety notices. This is not a compliance management framework. It is a minimal engagement that leaves the aerodrome operator exposed to the regulatory and safety consequences of tenant non-compliance that the operator did not identify and therefore did not address.

AACS designs tenant and contractor management frameworks for aerodrome operators:

• Airside standards framework — the documented operational and safety standards that all organisations operating on the aerodrome must meet as a condition of airside access, covering vehicles, training, safety management, incident reporting and equipment standards
• Tenant assessment framework — the structured periodic assessment of each airside organisation’s compliance with the aerodrome operator’s standards, with clear escalation and intervention procedures for non-compliance
• Contractor pre-qualification framework — the safety management, training and equipment standards that contractors must demonstrate before being granted airside access for construction or maintenance activities
• Licence-to-occupy and access agreement advisory — ensuring that the legal framework governing tenant and contractor airside access supports the aerodrome operator’s compliance management obligations
• Tenant safety data sharing protocol — the mechanism through which safety data generated by tenant organisations flows into the aerodrome operator’s SMS and compliance monitoring framework

Aerodrome Consultative Committee & Stakeholder Engagement

Effective aerodrome operation requires constructive engagement with a wide range of stakeholders — airlines, ground handling organisations, local authorities, ATC providers, emergency services, planning authorities and local communities. For many aerodrome operators, structured stakeholder engagement is an underdeveloped area of operational management — important for the aerodrome’s relationships, regulatory position and commercial environment, but not given the attention or governance structure it warrants.

AACS provides advisory support for aerodrome operator stakeholder engagement:

• Aerodrome Consultative Committee (ACC) structure and governance advisory — terms of reference, membership, agenda structure and documentation standards
• Airline and ground handler relationship framework — the structured engagement processes that manage operational interfaces, resolve disputes and share safety information with airline and handling partners
• Local authority and planning authority engagement — advisory on managing the aerodrome’s relationship with planning authorities, noise management obligations and community engagement requirements
• Emergency services relationship management — the liaison framework that ensures police, ambulance and fire service emergency planning remains current and exercised

Why AACS for Aerodrome Operational Management

AACS advisors bring direct experience of aerodrome operations and UK CAA regulatory engagement — the combination of operational knowledge and regulatory understanding that is required to produce documentation that works in both the operational environment and the oversight assessment. We understand the physical environment of the airside area, the operational pressures that shape how procedures are actually followed, and the regulatory expectations the UK CAA brings to licence oversight of aerodromes across the size spectrum.

We work across the full range of aerodrome types. The operational management challenges of a major regional airport with multiple airlines and hundreds of airside personnel are different from those of a small GA aerodrome managed by a handful of permanent staff. Both deserve documentation and advisory that reflects their actual situation rather than a scaled version of someone else’s. AACS calibrates every piece of work to the specific aerodrome.

Our approach is practical. Aerodrome operators do not need lengthy reports observing that their compliance position could be improved. They need clear identification of the specific gaps, direct advice on how to address them, and documentation support that enables the corrections to be made. That is what AACS delivers.

Services at a Glance

Speak to an AACS Specialist

Whether you are approaching initial aerodrome licence certification, revising documentation that has fallen behind operational reality, preparing for a UK CAA oversight visit, responding to a regulatory finding, or seeking specialist support with emergency planning, runway incursion prevention, FOD management, wildlife hazard management or tenant compliance, AACS provides the operational knowledge and documentation capability to deliver what you need.

We will be direct about what your aerodrome’s documentation and compliance position requires, what the regulatory framework demands, and how we can help you manage your licensing obligations effectively and sustainably.